A group of 20 musicians and dancers from the Torres Strait — a tiny group of islands off the Australian and Papua New Guinea coasts — toured Fiji.
According to an article published by The Fiji Times on March 2, 1983, the group had been scheduled to perform ancient dances in urban and village centres in Lautoka during the 15-day tour.
The group had also visited and performed in Nadi, Sigatoka, Suva, Korovou and Tailevu, Viria and Vunidawa in Naitasiri, Ovalau, Rakiraki and Tavua.
The tour was arranged by the Ministry of Fijian Affairs and the Australian High Commission in Suva, in conjunction with the Fiji Arts Council.
The visit to Fiji was part of the troupe covering New Zealand, Hawaii, and the West Coast of the United States.
The Torres Strait islanders had specifically requested the Fiji tour to enable them to experience the Fijian culture firsthand and to live in Fijian villages to exchange experience in dance forms.
The idea of taking their songs and dances overseas was initially suggested by the islanders themselves and each of the group invested personal savings to ensure that the tour went ahead.
Subsequently, the Australian Government had supported the project through the Aboriginal Arts Board of Australia.
The Torres Strait Islands’ people are a mixture of predominantly Melanesian and to a lesser extent the Philippines, Malaysian and Papua New Guinea people.
About 2000 years ago the Torres Strait Islands people moved into the region from Melanesia because of the abundant fishing and key position for inter-island trading.
They were, and still are, fiercely independent.
They are part of Australia and are Australian citizens.
In the past 200 years the Torres Strait islanders have become world renowned as deep-sea divers developing large industries in natural pearls and trochus shells.
However, during the past 20 years these two industries were overtaken by synthetic products, and this necessitated a large migration from the Torres Strait islands to the Australian mainland.
Unfortunately, many of the traditional dances and cultural activities lost their social significance because of the movement away from the homeland.
Many of the Torres Strait Islands people are no longer able to speak their local tongues.